Body rest adjustment for coffin



Aug. 25, 1964 R. L. HEGMAN ETAL 3,145,445

BODY REST ADJUSTMENT FOR COFFIN Filed Nov. 26, 1962 I vllllllllll) x22 ge ewes =..1 INVENTORS' w ROBERT L. HEGMAN BY CLINTON L. WEBER ATTORNEY.

United States Patent 3,145,445 BODY REST ADJUSTMENT FOR COFFIN Robert L. Hegman and Clinton L. Weber, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignors to Safeguard Corporation, Cincinnati, ()hio, a corporation of Ohio Filed Nov. 26, 1962, Ser. No. 240,075 1 Claim. (Cl. 2712) The present invention is useful in the casket industry and it provides an improved body rest adjustment for a coffin.

A primary object of the invention is to provide an adjustable body support for a cotfin, which support is so arranged as to allow adequate space for pillows and other interior accoutrements, permitting these to be handled without crushing during the storage and shipping of the coflin prior to its end use.

Another object of the invention is to provide a body support adjustment which can be manually operated in any one of three modes: First, by separate corners; second, from both ends; third, from either end.

A further object of one embodiment of the invention is to provide an improved body rest adjustment incorporating a mattress which serves as the sole support for the body.

Still another object of the invention is materially to advance the art of adjustable body supports for coffins by providing an adjusting arrangement which is relatively simple, reliable in operation, and free of the complex mechanisms characteristic of the prior art.

Another object of the invention is to provide for ready adjustment of the position of a corpse, without resorting to the necessity of removing or adding stuifing material to a cofin mattress.

For a better understanding of the present invention, together with other and further objects and capabilities thereof, reference is made to the following description of the appended drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 illustrates in perspective a cofiin embodying a preferred form of adjustable body rest in. accordance with the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a cross-sectional view of the FIGURE 1 embodiment as taken along the section line 22 of FIG- URE 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIGURE 3 is a. sectional view as taken along section line 3-3 of FIGURE 2, looking in the direction of the arrows; and

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged, detailed view of one latch member comprising a rod, slotted support and compression spring.

In the practice of the invention, we utilize a conventional casket body 10, comprising a bottom 11, ends 12 and 13, and sides 14 and 15. A platform 16 formed with an integral cotfin mattress provides support for the corpse.

Now an ever-present problem in the morticians art is to present a body with dignity and repose. Due to the dimensional variations as between corpses, and the necessity in most cases to elevate the body to the proper level in a cofiin, there is need to provide for ready, simple and quick adjustment of the elevation of platform 16, without resort to mechanisms that are complex, sticky, expensive, unreliable or lacking in ready access.

In accordance with the invention, therefore, we provide a first pair of spaced brackets or locating means 17, 13, at one end of the cofin, these being disposed at corners,

Patented Au fias, 1964 ICE and a second pair of spaced brackets, one of which is designated 19, at the other end of the cofiin. The brackets are formed with notches such as that indicated at 2%, definitive of available locating or elevational levels. It will be understood that all four of the brackets are similar and that they provide corresponding notches at several levels.

There are provided a first rod 21, which is adapted to project, near its ends, into notches in the first pair of brackets 17, 18, and a second rod 22, which is adapted to project into corresponding notches on the second pair of brackets. The platform is constructed with a pair of spaced support members 23 and 24- extending in the length direction of the coffin. The support members 23 and 24 are formed with slots such as 25 and 26 at their ends. Rod 21 slidably projects through the slots at one end of the support members. Rod 22 slidably projects through the slots at the other end of the support members. While the rods are capable of lateral movement toward each other, they are normally biased outwardly by endwardly extending coil or compression springs such as that indicated at 2'7, four compression springs being provided in all, each spring having an inner end abutting on 28 and an outer end which presses outwardly against a rod.

The platform 16 is provided with an integral mattress, the casing of which is positioned by being looped at its sides around the support members 23 and 24, and at its ends around transverse members such as that indicated at 28 (FIGURE 1). Now each transverse member, such as 28, is formed to extend into the support members 2 3 and 24, thus providing abutment surfaces against which the inner ends of the compression springs respectively rest. Assuming both rods to be articulated with corresponding notches in the associated pairs of spaced brackets, the description proceeds to alternate modes of accomplishing any desired adjustment, either by way of elevation or depression.

Optionally, an operator may press either rod 21 or 22 inwardly, disengaging one end of the platform from one end pair of brackets and he may then change the elevation of that end by placing the rod in the desired notches in that pair of end brackets. The operator then depresses the otherrod inwardly, disengaging it from the other pair of end brackets and finally permits said other rod to latch with the desired notches. As an alternative operators at'each end may simultaneously perform both of the aforementioned unlatching and latching operations. Third, the unlatching and latching operations may be performed by a single operator, one corner at a time. In any event, when an end of either rod 21 or 22 is registered with a higher or a lower notch, as the case may be, latching the corner of the platform again in place is accomplished by simply permitting the rod again to be biased outwardly into the notch by the associated compression spring.

We have found that this construction is particularly advantageous because of its low cost and simplicity.

Having disclosed our invention, we claim:

In a cofiin comprising a bottom, ends and sides, the combination of: A platform providing repose for the body, and means for adjustably positioning said platform comprising: a first pair of spaced brackets disposed at one end of said cofiin, a second pair of spaced brackets disposed at the other end of said coifin, said brackets being formed with open notches definitive of available elevational levels, the open notches of the first pair facing toward the open notches of the second pair, and all the notches facing in the direction of the platform, a first transversely extending rod adpated to project into corresponding notches in the first pair of brackets, a second transversely extending rod adapted to project into corresponding notches on the second pair of brackets, a pair of spaced support members for said platform extending lengthwise of said platform and formed With slots adjacent their ends, one of said rods extending through each pair of said slots, said slots being formed to permit displacement of said rods and manual release of said rods from said notches, and coil spring means disposed at each end of each support means and inboard of said transversely extending rods and effectively between said rods and said support means for biasing said rods outwardly toward and into said notches, the rods being biased into the notches to support the platform in any selected position and being manually released from said notches against the force of said coil spring means to permit adjustment of the platform elevation.

2,311,892 Uline Feb. 23, 1943 Gruber Apr. 2, 1963 

